Ethics: Mill's Moral Philosophy and Kant and Aristotle's Theories

Philosophy
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1 Central Claim of Mill's Hedonism
Mill defines happiness as freedom and pleasure from pain. He describes the best life in utilitarianism as an existence exempted from pain and displeasure and marked with significant enjoyment. The central claim of Mill's Hedonism is that pleasure is the only good instinct, and pain is the only evil instinct (Mill, 2018). All other factors are considered to contain an instrumental or extrinsic value that depends on the pain or pleasure that they produce. Ethical Hedonism claims that all pleasure has positive significance and all displeasure or pain has negative importance. Thus, the philosophy holds that pleasure is the most critical pursuit of humanity and the only essential factor.
Beast objection to Hedonism
The beast objection to Hedonism is that there could be some bad pleasures. For instance, some individuals gain pleasure from torturing others (Mill, 2018). Some bad pleasures should not be considered to be intrinsically valuable. Then beast objection of Hedonism is based on the concept of false pleasures, the idea that some pleasures are worthless, disgusting, and base, and the difficulty of measuring pain or pleasure. The objection is also based on the fact that we can imagine a good life and the alleged worthlessness of knowledge without pleasure. The philosophy is also objected because it is deemed to encourage extravagance, limit saving potential, and justify acts like drug abuse if it gives pleasure and enjoyment.
How Mill Overcomes the Challenges
Mill overcomes the challenges of the objection to his claims by stating that pleasure is freedom from pain but not all pleasure is good. Moreover, he gives examples to support these claims, which excluded the notion of absoluteness in his ideology.
2 The principle that Mill Utilizes to Determine Right from Wrong
Mill uses the principle of utility to determine right from wrong. The scholar derived the principle of utility from three considerations; impartiality, exhaustiveness, and desirability. Mill posits that humans are the only rational agent with clear, concise intrinsic worth and beings for whom small things have value, thus making their value absolute (Mill, 2018). Mill argues that intelligent beings should always be treated as an end, implying that humans have a strict duty of beneficence toward other persons. Treating other humans for purposes means respecting their rationality.
Objection to Moral Philosophy
Critics of Mill's moral philosophy reckons that pleasure is not a rational aim of human life because it will not always be attained. They further state that individuals cannot live without happiness, and all mortals are virtuous through their pursuit of happiness. The philosopher's explanation on the state of steering his learners away from the belief that things are in existence as a service to man.
How Utility Rules on Morality of Lying
As mentioned by Mill, Utility approves wrong actions, such as lying if it precipitates happiness and pleasure, undermining trust among individuals. Mill contends that the four causes do not depend on applying psychological concepts like human intentions, beliefs, or desires (Mill, 2018). The materia...